So I'm picking up the story of my travels in Sicily with Jenn and Tim on Sunday morning around 11:30, when we finally wake up after our night with the palermitani U2 fans (I know, isn't it awesome??) So we got a knock on the door around this time; it was Letizia, the hostel woman, telling us that unfortunately we had to get up. This was the day we were checking in, and maybe we vaguely heard someone, an American actually, trying to check in and put his bags in our room for the next day... but... we were asleep.
Letizia was actually so nice about it. Not only was she so helpful although we basically broke one of the typical rules of the hostel, she put out some things for breakfast for us! It ended up being such a nice morning. I chatted with her and Claudia, the woman who actually runs the hostel, for a little bit. They said it was ok (third reason why they were amazing!) if we left our bags up in the hostel while we explored the markets and gardens of Palermo. So we began our Sunday journey.
Palermo is kind of a rough city. I'm definitely glad I didn't go by myself... not only for that, I have to say that Jenn and Tim were more than excellent company. But let it suffice to say that while we were walking to the Quattro Canti on the way to the train station (this was before we left the city, a few hours later) we saw a crime scene. The police had blocked off the road in front of a church we had gone into on Friday, baroque style. But this time it was decorated with a couple puddles of blood on the front steps. So creepy. Not as much as the catacombes, but we were like, whoooa we're in Sicily.
But in the morning, we saw a religious procession, which I imagined we might see. There was a priest in black robes even though it was sooo hot, and he was holding a wooden cross up in the air. There were a few (but not a lot) people following behind, chanting in Italian. It struck me as a typically Sicilian scene... after all, like in the US, the south of Italy is more relgiously traditional than the north. Or maybe not religiously traditional, just religious period.
We reached the train station, turned left and wandered down what I maybe remember correctly as Corso Abramo Lincoln. Essentially, Abraham Lincoln Avenue. We were vaguely following the magical map of Palermo that John had made for us (he's another one of my VIU friends) and we were looking for this place that serves arancine, "little oranges." These sound benign but actually really can do a number on your system if you're not careful. NEVER eat more than one, even if they look small. I figured out this rule when I asked for mine (it cost 1.20, cheaper than gelato!) and the guy put it into my hand... it made my hand fall down a little since it was SO heavy. Inside there is... wow, this is important, I can't leave out the ingredients. There is rice inside, and the outside is battered and fried. The exact center can have different kinds of ingredients... one kind is called "mangiami mangiami" (eatme eatme) and has everything inside. I settled for the one with the meat and peas.
So we took our arancine outside on this beautiful, sunny Sunday. There were a lot of other palermitani around doing the same thing which told us this would be an amazing experience. Or at least a very typical experience. We began eating ravenously since we were so hungry. This was around 1:30. But we began slowing down as we began to realize how big these rice balls actually were. However, I am proud to say that I finished mine! First, and I was also the only one to finish. But it's not really a problem because Jenn and Tim did the right thing for their health and I did not. But it was ok... haha.
We began walking through the public garden known as the Villa Giulia which is just across the street. That's when the arancina started to kick in... for Tim and Jenn, that is! For some odd reason, I felt fine. And don't worry, this never changed. I was absolutely ok! It was like I hadn't eaten anything at all! Ok, not really, but I felt great. And the garden was beautiful! Run down, ancient even. It felt like we were "in the lost world," as Jenn put it. And it is the "old world," as so many call it, Palermo, Sicily. After a little jaunt through the gardens, looking at the fountains and the flowers and the families enjoying a beautiful day, I was up for another round. Gelato anyone???
Of course, Jenn and Tim took me up on this offer. But first we went to the botanical gardens, which had a lot more beautiful plants and it was actually much bigger than the public Villa Giulia. This place had specific types of plants that the botany department of the Universita' di Palermo had been cultivating and studying. There was even an "experimental plants" section. And of course there were fountains and beautiful greenhouses, and the amazing old magnolia style trees from Australia that I mentioned before.
We got a gelato before collecting our bags from the hostel and bussing back to Trapani. The gelato in Sicily, I should say, is SO cheap and SO rich. And they give you SOOO much!!! Tim got the speciality though. This includes a couple of scoops of gelato (very generous) in a brioche, which is essentially a pastry shaped like a hamburger bun. Sooo good for you, right??? Haha, you can tell that this was the most healthy experience of our Sicilian adventure.
So we got to the train station, and after a bit of confusion, we figured out where we should buy our bus tickets (from the meanest bus ticket salesman in Palermo, I know it... maybe my Italian isn't perfect... but it's pretty good. Actually I'm getting to a problem point because I can speak so naturally sometimes that when I screw up or have trouble understanding, people don't think I'm an American, they just think I'm a really stupid Italian. And my looks don't help this battle much either). So with a half hour to go before the bus left, we decided to cool off at a nearby cafe with a beer. Unfortunately Tim ended up buying 66cl bottles (more than 2 times the amount of a typical bottle in the USA). So I didn't manage to finish, and it was a good thing because the bus ride to Trapani was just south of two hours and I didn't really fancy needing to go to the bathroom on a bouncy vehicle like the bus.
We arrived in Trapani in one piece with nevertheless a pretty decent need to use the bathroom. I called Marcello, the guy who runs the B&B Al Porto, where we were set up to stay. We had NO idea where in Trapani we were. But to our astonishment, Marcello said that he would pick us up and drive us to the hostel! Yesss! So we got there, worked out the arrangements and paid since we'd have to leave early in the morning. We had booked a matrimoniale and a singolo, only two beds, so Tim and I split the huge bed and left Jenn to her own bed.
Marcello didn't speak any English, or if he did, he didn't want to. No problem! Communicating was a snap, even with the Sicilian accent, which I actually really like a lot. Cinquanta= shinguanda, Marcello = Marshello, you know. So we went out into the streets and gave Trapani a try. Weirdly, it's an odd community because a few of the buildings are so new, it's like they were constructed within the past 10 years. Ridiculously new for this country. But Trapani has an incredible port, very clean and new, the best I've ever seen in fact. Despite this, being on these streets felt a little like being in a planned community like Phillips place or the other place in Charlotte where the restaurant Brio is (sorry for all my non-Charlottean buds and family out there, haha). This however didn't take away from the charm of the community. Walking around in the tiny streets, just a single stroll would run you past the same people several times.
We were hungry. Stomach completely empty. In only three or so hours, I would feel the exact opposite. Anyway, here we go. The only place we could find on this main road was a pizza place, and so we all got a slice of pizza (really pretty mediocre). THEN down by the water we found a trattoria, and it looked good, and we were still hungry. So what do we do? Sit down for an actual meal. We were able to watch the ships coming into port, that was pretty cool. Afterwards, I was stuffed but what's the rule in Sicily? Enough is never enough when it comes to food! This simple philosophy led Tim and I once again to the gelato stand where "I spoke better Italian so I got way more gelato" according to Tim. I don't know if that's the reason, but I definitely did have two fist-sized scoops of gelato right there. And we walked through the streets enjoying the first few bites. It was only when we stopped at an intersection listening to a singer at this cafe that it hit me. The PAIN! It was honestly my best guess to what contractions must feel like. I wasn't doubled over but literally my stomach was so full, so solid... like, it hadn't been that hard since wrestling season my senior year in high school, and that was from a completely different reason. Ahhh!
Anyway, I made it back, and I'm fine now. I think. Time will tell.
This is the last official week of classes. Here are a few new points:
The humidity is KILLING ME. There hasn't been new air in my dorm room for maybe 5 days. It's honestly like a giant is exhaling through the AC vents... which aren't working.
The last VIU trip, on the Laguna di Venezia, goes to Torcello, Burano and some other islands nearby on Friday. I'm going, it should be fun.
I've finished all my papers and have only Professor Northrup's exam left, that's on tuesday. Wish me luck!
Andrew
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